15 Arrow's Little Hits
by PeechTao
Summary: Ever wonder what the Avengers life would be like behind closed doors? As in, those little moments of domesticity that surely involve their lives. Well here is one attempt at that glimpse. A series of tales following the Avengers interaction with a long run character of mine, like the pizza dog of the comics, this is Arrow's story. Arrow's SHIELD file included in chapter one.
1. The Dog Park

Just like my story "Moments" this is all a little harmless enjoyment between Clint Barton, the rest of the Avengers, and the little wolf known as Arrow.

for those not acquainted with my stories, this is Arrow's SHIELD file, which can be found via tumblr. :

Name: Arrow

Species: Canis dirus (Dire wolf)

Description: Grey agouti thick coat, white underbelly, face framed in black edges. 70 inches in length, 45 inches in height, estimated weight is between 130-190lbs

Alternative Description: due to Tony Stark and Dr. Bruce Banner's creativity, the true form of Arrow is hardly seen. Instead, the wolf can normally be observed as a variety of breeds relative to his current size. Known holographic forms of Arrow are displayed in the following picture file: (see golden retriever, alaskan malamute, and belgian malanois)

Special Certifications: Arrow has been granted numerous certifications as a working animal in SHIELD. At one year of age, Arrow passed the bomb detecting classes and can be used to find incendiary devices. He also surpassed the other dogs in his class as a tracking animal, able to uncover a two-day scent of an assailant in Northern Mongolia. Besides these working certifications, Arrow has been trained as a personal assistance dog for Agent Barton. Reportedly deaf since 2005, though the actual date has been assumed much more recent than that, Arrow was re certified as a service animal for the deaf. Proficient at alerting his handler to alarms, phone calls, and navigating while deaf, Arrow's role as a service animal fluctuates with the increased efficiency at Agent Barton's hearing aids.

**Arrow's Little Hits  
**

Book 1 -The Dog Park-

Clint sighed as he stared at Arrow from across the dog park. Beside him, Tony was already laughing.

"I don't know how he does it to himself." Clint admitted as they walked over together. "He likes to climb, I get that, but if he gets stuck in this tree one more time...I'm going to saw the limbs off!"

Tony edged along beside him, his hands stuffed into his pockets as they went to free the trapped dire wolf pup. "Perhaps this is a desperate plea for your attention. Or an attempt at chest crushing suicide."

Clint gave Stark a sidelong look. "Oh please, I spend every moment of my life with him. Except that time when I woke up and found out you took him off to Tahiti or something in your jet."

"Bali. And we had a wonderful time without you." Stark corrected.

Clint reached out and un-wedged his limp pup from the Y of the tree. A well-meaning ring of dog owners had already approached in attempt to give aid.

"The poor thing!" a man exclaimed. "He's a little punk to get himself stuck that high. Hey, what kind of dog is — "

"Malamute!" — "Husky!"

Tony and Clint exchanged a private look at their mix-match of statements. Technically speaking, people in New York had an aversion to a wolf in their midst, let alone one whose parentage went back to Geri and Freki, the dire wolves of Odin Allfather.

The trio of dog park enthusiasts waited for the Avengers to come up with a better line. True to form, Tony was the one to speak first. "He's a rescue. Got him off the streets in Dutch Harbor a few weeks ago while my friend got off a fishing boat. We really don't know what he is."

Clint's head slowly turned toward Stark. It was official; he was blocking the Deadliest Catch-a-thon the minute they got back to the Tower.

One man, who decided to hand his three pound Pomeranian to another, came forward and tickled little Arrow's nose. "You know, it's just so great to see other men out here with their kids. They are just our entire lives, aren't they?"

Tony grinned. "You know, that's precisely what I tell Vlad, but he never listens."

"Vlad?" Clint whispered.

The friendly chatter from the dog owners was interrupted by the woman across the fence. She waved to get their attention, though it wasn't necessary. She had just rolled up in a fixed up black Corvette Stingray with carbon fiber hood and removable roof, black Recaro seats, complete Brembo Brakes setup, and a 7 Liter V8 turbo-charged engine that, when it roared and hissed, could stop men's hearts. The passenger door kicked open.

"Hi, fellas, Rhodes wants you. You lovers done walking the dog?"

"Rroo rroo roo." Arrow howled at the familiar Natasha Romanov.

Clint thanked his luck for her untimely arrival and scooped his dog into his arms. He waved a little goodbye to the dog walkers and jumped the fence with Tony behind him. It wasn't until they reached the car that Tony realized it was a two seater only, and Clint had already parked himself in the passenger seat.

"Have fun walking." Clint grinned.

"This is cruel and unusual." Tony said. "Not befitting of a true lover."

"You want my sneakers?"

"It's ten blocks to get home."

"Take a cab."

Tony looked over at Natasha. "I want this car."

In response to that, she leaned over and planted an intimate kiss against Clint's lips. She dropped her shades over her eyes. "Sorry Stark. Sometimes a girl's gotta keep her toys close."

The engine roared, the car leaped forward and left in a trail of dust towards the heart of the city. Tony watched until it disappeared around the first corner. He wondered whether they may change their mind and circle the block so Clint and he could double up in the front seat. Or Natasha would throw him in the trunk.

But they didn't come back. It wasn't really a surprise.

"Hey!" a dog park enthusiast called.

Tony turned a little, fiddling with his wristlet.

"Aren't you Tony Stark?"

"No."

Like a bullet from the sky, War Machine crashed to the sidewalk beside him. Half a second later, the Mach 50 Iron Man suit appeared with him. Tony smiled at the dog walkers as the suit clam shelled open and he was able to climb inside.

"Ok, maybe I lied."

* * *

will have more action-packed adventures to come, but for now, enjoy the shameless fun.


	2. Party with the Fantastic Four

Thank you all for the wonderful feedback! I'm so glad this little compilation is getting some attention. here's the next tale!

**Arrow's Little Hits  
**

Book 2 -Party with the Fantastic Four-

_It's not the roof of Stark Tower, but at least it will do for now,_ Clint thought to himself. He wasn't one to enjoy parties, let alone those hosted by Tony's sworn arch enemies…Reid Richards and the Fantastic Four. Though Clint had been able to avoid the initial introduction between the two scientific powerhouses of New York, there was no excuse big enough to miss out on the reciprocated invite to Richards' daytime shindig. If Tony had the ability to raise three million dollars for the Chitauri rebuilding fund, then Richards' was going to top that by an extra ten mill for the London Recreation event. Clint figured he'd make his appearance, drink some of the free beer, then retreat to the roof in quiet.

His dire wolf Arrow was dressed as a golden retriever for this occasion. The minute Tony created a holographic projector that could conform to the wolf's size and shape, he decided to tinker endlessly with it. After all, having a wolf at a brunch was never a recipe for settling the minds of the general public, but a golden retriever generally gave people smiles. Now in the privacy of the roof top, Clint switched Arrow's hologram off to enjoy the presence of his best friend in his true form. It wasn't long after his retreat to parts unknown that the door to the roof top lounge opened and a woman dressed in an elegant miniskirt tumbled out, rifling through her clutch for what Clint assumed must be a cigarette. Her eyes drifted up to him, and Clint realized then…he forgot to turn the hologram back on…

As her mouth dropped nearly enough to hit the pebbled roof tile, he smiled at her in a friendly, distracting way. "Susan, you smoke! Hey, um, so how's that invisibility crap coming?"

She fumbled for words, the purse dropped as her hand stretched forward, one pointing finger at a time.

Clint hiked a thumb back over his shoulder in a questioning way then turned to see Arrow staring at him with his tongue lolling to one side. Now, he could attempt to play off the wolf's presence in the middle of a fancy dress party in New York City, or he could do exactly what he'd trained his loving friend for in just such occasions.

Clint decided to go with the latter.

He jumped off of the ledge where he'd been sitting, and shouted as loud as he could. Arrow flinched and locked eyes with him. He crouched low, as if the whole world was shifting beneath his feet. Clint waved his arms over his head like a fool and backed away. At first, taking the signal as an invitation to play, the wolf went into a bow and shook his tail out.

"Oh my God!" Clint screamed. "Do you see that? What the Hell has Reed been doing here?!"

"Reed hasn't done –! " Susan tried to find her voice.

Clint was beside her now. He grabbed her by the shoulders. "You see it too, right? You see it? WHAT IS THAT THING?"

Arrow tilted his head to the side, watching his master's peculiar behavior with the newcomer. Then a little dog memory triggered in his mind. His ears stood erect, he rose from his bow and straightened out his tail. The ridge on his back became more pronounced at Clint's encouraging look. His lips pulled up and back before letting out a snarl.

Clint screamed. Susan screamed. The two humans went running for it. Clint pushed the woman ahead of him and she flew down the stairs three at a time. In her fright, her control over invisibility waned and she began to disappear before Clint's eyes. By the time she hit the first landing and flew through the door, all that was left to see were her clothes. Clint allowed the door she'd blown through to close before he reached it. Once it was fully sealed, he took out one of the stray arrowheads he always had hanging around his pockets and jammed it in the hinges. He made a big show of struggling to get the knob pulled open to no avail. Then, he spent a few moments pounding and shouting at it. From the other side, there was no Susan Storm to come running to his rescue. Some pair of heroes they made. She'd effectively taken off and left him for dog bait.

The archer grinned and leaned up the stairwell. Arrow was at the top, peaking down from the roof. Clint whistled and the wolf made his way down.

"Well, that was fun." He said, searching for Arrow's hologram trigger on his collar. Finding it, he flipped the switch to be greeted by the yellow tresses of the Golden Retriever again. "I guess no more wolf antics for this party."

The long pink tongue lolled out of the side of his mouth.

"Was that fun? Who's a good dog?"

"Arrooo." The wolf howled.

"Arrroo. That's a good dog." Clint ruffled Arrow's fur. He took the arrowhead out of the doorjamb and, instead of rejoining the party, took the stairwell down. He'd had enough of this award show for one day.

* * *

another quick little diddy. i hope it made you laugh.

please review! i have another 3-4 ideas in the mix to continue this with.


	3. The Race

here's the next chapter, enjoy!

* * *

Book 3 – The Race—

The day turned out just as perfect as the five thousand participants prayed for. Spring was in full Central Park bloom, turning the permafrost of the harsh post-vortex winter to the blooming fruits of a new year. Most of the trees were already turning green. Grass lined the paved paths and the mounted patrol sat unhorsed, allowing the animals to browse. Pepper Potts looked stunning in her jogging suit of yoga pants and sleeveless athletic top. As yet, Tony was a no-show. Most likely he would appear at the end of the race and accept the glory of having finished without the work of really running.

Clint draped Arrow's leash over the dog's back as he approached the check-in table and smiled at Pepper. For today's outing, Arrow was dressed as a German Shepherd wearing a white t-shirt with a Captain America shield displayed down his back. Natasha thought it was cute.

"Raise enough to end all future Autism Awareness fundraisers?"

She smiled. "Close, I think. Stark Industries is matching the donations, so I think it's already a pretty great success. Are you running too?"

Clint turned his left arm toward her to display the number Sharpie-d onto his bicep. "Steve and me both. We figured a couple Avengers would be good for photo ops."

Her eyebrow arched. "Wow, you don't mind that? What about your undercover work?"

He shrugged. "I quit SHIELD, I'm just an Avenger now. I can still go undercover if I want, but I really don't need to protect my face as much anymore."

It was different seeing this side of Clint. He'd handed in his resignation to Director Fury himself only a few weeks before, and already he strutted around like a free man lifted of a murder charge. She'd seen him walking Arrow in the open, sometimes with Natasha, sometimes without. He'd agreed to go out to a fancy dinner, even bought a sharp suit of his own for the occasion. Tony had an award ceremony to attend and Clint went along without so much as a peep of complaint. Now, seeing him at a publicity event, it was nearly too much nuance to bear.

The change did please her. From the small glimpses into his private life Clint gave her, she knew he had a rough upbringing. He'd only ever known the harsh realities of a fatal childhood, or the bruising punishment of circus labor. Surely, Phil rescued him from that difficult past, but to what end? He slaved away, globetrotting for a spy agency, risking life, limb, and all those closest to him. He may have quit SHIELD, but he was still an Avenger. Danger, in very new and more terrifying forms, would still haunt him wherever he traveled. But the transition from Agent to just plain Hawkeye agreed with him immensely.

"Well I'm glad you came out. Race starts in half an hour."

"Steve said he was walking over from his apartment. I think he'll be here soon." Clint sighed. "No rush. I think I'd have to hobble him if I ever expected to win in a foot race – "

"ARE YOU AN AVENGER?!"

Clint nearly jumped out of his skin with Pepper yelping beside him. They turned together to see a woman rushing over. She held a small backpack in one hand and shouldered an oversized purse in the other. Running up behind her was a man in athletic shorts and loose fitting top. Clint hardly needed to fall back on training to know what was going on.

From their Autism puzzle print shirts, and the lack of the small child that surely went with the back pack, he could ascertain their child had wandered off. There was a big crowd, a lot of ways for a kid to get lost. It was also Central Park; there were plenty opportunities for a kidnapping if someone felt inclined for it. Clint straightened as they came toward him.

"I am." He said, feeling a swell of pride in his chest. People recognizing him was not something he typically experienced. It felt . . . good.

The woman dropped the purse when she reached him. She tried desperately to speak and catch her breath at the same time. The man, from the wedding ring, Clint assumed it was her husband, tried to fill in the details between her panting breaths.

"Our little boy. He's only six!" . . . "We turned around and he was gone, I asked the officers and they said – " . . . "They wanted to make sure he was with us! I said of course he was!"

She held out the backpack desperately. Large tear drops obscured her terrified eyes. "He wanders. He can't help it. I don't know—"

"We came for the race. I'm running for my son, and he was just – "

"You have to find our little boy!"

"Please, please you've got to help us!"

Clint held up his hands to try and put them at ease. While he could take in some of their details, it was difficult when they talked over each other. Pepper approached and caught the woman in a tender embrace to try and soothe her. The minute they touched, the woman's desperate pleas turned into heart wrenching sobs.

Before Clint could draw out the information he needed, he felt a hand touch his shoulder in a familiar way. He turned slightly to see that Steve had arrived in his running gear. Nothing soothed a ravaged soul like the all-American Wonderboy appearing on the scene.

"Can I help?" Steve asked him.

"Missing child, male, six years old." Clint filled him in, "Autistic. May have wondered off but I want to be sure."

Steve nodded knowingly. In that soothing effect he had on others, he asked the parents. "Ma'am, where did you last see him? Can you point it out to us?"

The father indicated the water stand set up not far away. "I swear, he was right next to us one minute and then he was just gone. Do you think someone could have taken him?"

The woman swooned against Pepper and moaned.

"We'll just have a look around for ourselves first." Steve continued calmly. "What was he wearing? Do you have a recent picture?"

The man leaned down to rifle through the spilled contents of his wife's purse. Clint assisted him in putting the objects back into place. As he looked, he answered, "A red shirt, he loves the color red, and grey shorts. He had his hat on, a Yankees hat, but he likes to take it off. I don't know if he kept it on, he just likes to keep pulling it off."

He found the photo in a wallet and handed it to Clint. He stood with his wife's things in his hands. "Please, I don't know what I'd – He just doesn't know to stay close. If someone finds him, he wouldn't know what to say."

"It's ok, we've done this before." Clint told him reassuringly. He indicated the backpack. "Are those his things?"

The mother handed the backpack over willingly. "His name is Tommy. He can't even – " she sobbed, "He can't even talk. He's six, he can't even talk."

"Did you bring Arrow?" Steve asked him.

"Yeah, if anything could track a little boy down, it's Arrow." Clint replied. He looked down beneath the table where Arrow had initially crawled to get out of the sun.

Steve addressed the parents. "It's a good thing you found Hawkeye. We have a dog that works with us. He's highly trained in search and rescue, and tracking. He's never failed to find someone yet. Hawkeye is his handler."

The father looked over at Hawkeye who had half scuttled under the table. The Avenger poked his head out to Steve.

"Uh, Cap? Arrow's gone too."

Steve blinked. He opened his mouth a little, surprised. "Well . . . that's a first."

Clint stood, still holding the missing child's backpack in his hand as he scanned the area. Arrow never left his side, ever, without being commanded to.

"New plan." Steve said. "Sir, you take me to where you last saw him and we'll have a look around together. Clint, you track down Arrow. I've got a funny feeling about this."

Clint agreed. He had a similar feeling. He extracted a small toy car from the boy's belongings and handed the rest back to the mother. If he found Arrow it would be plenty enough scent for him to track. They split into groups. Pepper, supporting the mother still, followed Steve and the boy's father. Clint went in search of Arrow.

The wolf had a sixth sense, one he often shared with his human handler. If Arrow had cruised off on his own, either he'd found something very worthy of Clint's attention, or Tony had showed up and snuck off with him. Either case was equally likely.

He whistled as he walked and searched. The ground displayed no obvious drag marks or tufts of hair. Wherever Arrow had gone off too, he'd gone willingly. As Clint tracked around, following the occasional paw prints in the sparse grass, he had the distinct feeling that Arrow was after something. What it was, he couldn't decide; there too much foot traffic obscured the trail for him to be certian.

He made a wide arch around the race start, threading through the waiting runners. He passed the water stand and watched for a moment as Steve interviewed the investigating Officers. Arrow had gone straight through the area.

"Arrow?" Clint called. He'd left the majority of the populace behind, approaching the edge of Central Park and 85th Street. With the decreased human presence, he could make out not only Arrow's very distinct paw prints, but also the shoe impressions of a small child, maybe an adult as well. It seemed Steve and his assumption of something fishy was warranted. Where the park ended and the street began, he found a Yankees baseball cap.

"Arrow?" he called louder.

Above the groan of approaching traffic, he heard the characteristic howl of his best friend. Clint picked up his pace, jogging to the edge of the park where he found his Dire Wolf at last. He stood on the opposite side of 85th Street with his front paws propped up on the driver's seat of a car. He howled and barked, raising a royal ruckus at the man squeezed against the passenger door just out of the wolf's grasp.

The white t-shirt the wolf had been wearing was shredded on the ground on the opposite side of the car. Two tires were as flat as pancakes, most likely from the finger-sized canines that ripped right through their sidewalls.

Clint cursed under his breath. He trusted Arrow had probably just cornered a man who deserved it, and not a random passerby. He dodged the 85th Street morning rush and crossed to the driver's side of the car.

"Niðr!" Clint ordered in Norse. "Down! Niðr!"

Arrow backed off the driver's seat and stood at attention. He stopped barking and waited for Clint to order him.

"What the Hell man!?" The guy shouted. "That thing tried to kill me! I'm going to sue the crap out of you! Get that thing away from me!"

Clint smiled friendly-like. "Good morning, sir. I see you're having car trouble."

The man cursed at him.

"I see." Clint said. He glanced in the back seat and noticed exactly what he expected. A little brown-haired boy sat buckled into seat with a red shirt and grey shorts. Clint recognized him from the photograph at once.

"Tommy right?" Clint asked the boy. The child looked at him and grinned but said nothing. Barton returned his attention to the man in the passenger seat. "Now, sir, I'm going to advise you to stay very still and not attempt to run or make any sudden movements. I think you have already met Arrow."

The wolf growled lowly, licking his chops.

"Well, Arrow doesn't like guys who kidnaps kids, and I can tell you I'm not really a fan either. So, I'm going to take this – " Clint popped the lock on the back door and extracted Tommy from the seat. The trusting boy curled his arms around Clint's neck. "And you do me a favor and sit tight till I can wave down an officer, ok? Unless you like being lunch meat, of course."

With the boy in his arms Clint stepped away from the car and extracted his cell phone from his pocket. To Arrow he said, "_Geyma_." Watch.

The wolf climbed up behind the steering wheel again, his face a few inches from the would-be kidnapper. He looked fierce enough with the face of a German shepherd, Clint couldn't imagine what the guy would be doing if he knew the dog was really a dire wolf.

After a few rings, Steve's voice came over the line. "Hey, Steve. 85th Street. Send some of those cops my way, would you? Yeah, quick. I've got the boy, he's fine. I'll bring him over when the blues get here."

Clint hung up and looked over at Arrow. "Who's a good boy?"

The long pink tongue lolled out of the wolf's mouth for a moment until the man beside him went reaching for his door handle. Then the tongue sucked back in and a low rumbling growl festered in the wolf's throat.

"I wouldn't do that." Clint warned the man. He watched as, across the street, a few of the mounted police officers made their way to him. It would only be a couple minutes before they took over the scene. "Arrow likes taking chunks out of more than tires, if you get my drift."

"Don't you got some cat to take out of a tree?" The man complained.

The Avenger shrugged. "Cats, aliens, bald kid-snatchers . . . all in a day's work." Clint waved an arm over his head to bring the patrolmen over.

"Hi fellas," he addressed them. "One sleaze ball for downtown. Kidnapping. You'll find physical evidence in the car, no doubt, but if you want me to come down and sign some witness statements, I'll manage it after the race."

One patrolman dismounted and handed his reigns to another. "Is that the race kid?"

"Yeah, I'll take him back. Arrow grabbed the perp, so it's his collar." Clint said the word without thinking and laughed afterward about it. "I _so_ want to see that written in the report."

The patrolman chuckled a little. One black and white squad car turned the corner and came straight for them. That was Clint's cue to turn the scene over. He whistled for Arrow and the wolf climbed out of the front seat.

"Someone back with the parents?" He asked.

"Officer Donnelly. He'll take the report from their end."

Clint nodded and waved at them. "All right. I'm taking him back, I'll let Donnelly work it out. You guys got this?"

"Sure do, Hawkeye."

He smiled. It _was_ nice to get recognized. "I'll leave it to you then."

With Arrow trotting at his side with a pit bull grin, Clint retreated back to Central Park. Tommy watched the wide world go by with his expressive eyes, never comprehending the depth of the danger he had narrowly avoided. When they were safely back within park limits, Clint dropped the child from his shoulders to an excited Arrow's back. The boy was small and thin for his age, but not unusual for his condition. Arrow had no qualms about giving him a piggy back ride and the boy was fascinated with the wolf's fur.

When they arrived back on the race grounds it was nearly start time. Tommy's mother stood on her own power, looking desperately for the first sign of her son coming back to her. Her husband paced in small circles beside the officer and Steve while Pepper continued to reassure them. The minute Clint and Arrow were within sight the parents raced toward them. Arrow jogged ahead excitedly as the little boy bounced and laughed on his back.

Tommy was instantly scooped up into his mother's arms. His father squeezed in, desperate to feel that his son was truly all right. Arrow waited, planting his bum on the ground as he watched the happy reunion. No one could deny the wolf knew exactly what a good job he'd done. He was nearly as expressive as any man, and he waited patiently for the attention from a job well done. Steve leaned over and ruffled Arrow's thick scruff.

"What a good boy!" he exclaimed. "You take off before we knew to, huh? That right, Arrow?"

"Aaarrooo!" Arrow howled, crashing his head into Steve's chest to prolong the praise.

Tommy pressed his hands against the crush of his parents and leaned out of his mother's arms to reach out for the wolf. His hands opened and closed with searching fingers. Arrow reached up with his wet, black nose and nuzzled the child's palms before devouring him with his tongue.

"Arrow!" the boy laughed and squealed.

Clint looked at the father, surprised. "And here I thought he didn't talk."

The father was equally stunned. "But . . . but he doesn't. That's the first time our boy's ever said anything! Tommy, what did you say? Say it again. What's the doggy's name?"

Tommy ignored his father's attempt to get his attention and continued to let Arrow shower him.

"Arrow," he repeated, giggling angelically. He was completely oblivious to his recent peril. Only Arrow mattered to him. "Arrow!"

His mother released him from the wiggling grip and, with his feet planted on the ground, the little boy sailed forward and clamped a hold of Arrow's neck. Any more attention and the wolf was likely to have a seizure from the ecstasy.

Steve addressed the parents. "I think you might want to consider getting a dog." He nodded toward Clint. "Mr. Smiley here wasn't always so outgoing till a friend gave Arrow to him, now look at him; out in public and everything!"

Clint shoved Steve in a friendly way.

There was a loud bell that interrupted the group, then the snap of a starter pistol. The crowd across from them began to move in a single mass across the race course as the 4K began. Hawkeye stroked Arrow's head as he watched the runners start off. "Officer Donnelly? You mind walking the race with us, and take your information while we move?"

The officer agreed. He was already working on the report on his clipboard. The group moved as one toward the back of the runners. Little Tommy climbed onto Arrow's back, and the run-turned-walk began with the hero dog leading the pack, his newly adopted human cruising alongside him for the rest of the race.

* * *

just a cute little aside:)

if you have any dog-centric ideas send them on over, i have another 3 to-be-written ones thus far but i love inspiration:)


	4. Role Model

thank you all for the great ideas and reviews! I have a few more in the works, but this one was based off the work of Arrow as a "Service Dog". I have finals this week, so i may be slowing down my posts a little due to forcing myself to study, but we shall see!

* * *

Book 4 –Role Model—

"Is he yours?"

Clint looked up from his iPad. He hit the off switch with a finger to prevent the newcomer from reading the graphic incident reports he was working on. "Hmm?"

A woman stood across from him. According to his initial fast assessment, he could tell she was the soccer mom type with at least two kids. There was a stroller parked a little ways from them with the seat adjusted for a larger child, perhaps three or four. The baseball glove beneath it fit a larger hand. She smiled in an unassuming way, apparently trying to smooth over the awkward introduction.

"Sorry for interrupting you. I was just wondering if the dog belonged to you. Bohdi's taken to trying to chase him around. I worried if that was all right."

Clint looked around to try and locate Arrow's streak of golden retriever tail. He noticed it, struck up in the air like a flag pole as he bowed his front half close to the dirt. A boy stood across from him, mimicking the wolf-in-dog's clothing's movements. After a moment of standoff, Arrow jumped up and ran like a mad dog. The boy chased after him laughing.

He leaned back against the park bench. "No, don't feel awkward. Arrow loves kids. He doesn't get to cut loose very often, that's why I bring him around here. He's gentle too."

She indicated the spot on the bench beside him. "May I?"

Setting his iPad to the side, Clint slid over to make room. He reassessed the woman quickly. Two kids, the other was most likely the pig tailed girl bouncing in the mulch under the jungle gym. No men were around, save for Clint, so she wasn't there with her significant other that he could tell. He casually glanced at her finger and almost sighed in relief when he saw the wedding ring affixed there. At least he wasn't fending off his space from an Avenger bunny.

"I don't mean to be forward or anything." She said.

Clint tried to hide his smile. "Hey, it's nothing, really."

"Oh not that . . . what I mean is—well—I guess this isn't going how I planned it."

He waited. Many people thought, and could argue, he had very little patience for anyone, but it wasn't necessarily the truth. He couldn't imagine what this woman wanted from him and why it took her this amount of nerve to come over and speak to him.

"I work on the Fifth Floor, Mr. McMillan's department?"

He turned toward her again and scanned her face this time. Come to think of it, he did recognize her. That made his mood relax, and his guard let up a little. "Oh! Oh, yeah of course. B—Beth? Beth Holloway?"

She smiled and nodded. "That's right. I'm sorry, I know we really never talk, and I shouldn't expect you to know who I am."

He shrugged. "No, that's all right. You'd be surprised how much I actually know about the people Tony works with."

"Oh that's good." She looked away from him to check on the state of her kids. The little girl was playing with a similar aged boy, digging peculiar chunks of wood from the mulch beneath them. Bohdi and Arrow continued to make their own race course.

While she checked in, Clint perused his mental files on Beth Holloway. There wasn't much there. She was a secretary and had a talent for typesetting, advertisement, and her background was a degree from Ohio University. She married a man whose first name began with L and Clint met him once at an employee brunch four months before. In all that background he couldn't uncover a good reason for her to seek him out. He'd become slightly more public lately since leaving his agency days behind, but that only increased his Avengers fanfare marginally. Unless someone needed him to rescue something or pose for a photo with a Hawkeye-clad child, most people tended to ignore him.

"Actually, I did have a request, if it's all right?" she worked up the nerve to ask.

Clint smiled noncommittally. "I will try to help. Is it about Mr. Stark?"

"Oh no, no, nothing like that. It's actually a little personal." She turned toward him, taking her eyes off the two children for a moment. To show he was listening attentively, he rotated on the bench and set the iPad on his lap. He propped his head on his palm while his elbow rested on the back of the bench.

"You see," she started, "I saw that report a few weeks ago Dr. Banner did on the news about the ear implant he helped design."

Clint tried to hide his surprise. Of all the conversations he considered they would have, this was not on the list. Banner and Stark both went public with the device they had surgically implanted in Clint's aural cavity. After a mission robbed him of his hearing, he struggled to cope with the substandard hearing aid technology available. Most of what he tried had the fault of being uncomfortable, grainy sounding quality, or was simply inappropriate for field work. When Bruce finished the design touches, it took some convincing to get Clint to go under the knife, but he was happy he had. The procedure, recovery, and result stunned him.

"I know Stark Industries was considering global production after some more clinical trials. My husband and I . . . well, we weren't sure what we wanted to do. Our son Bohdi wasn't born deaf, but he was very ill when the whole H1N1 epidemic hit and he lost almost all of his hearing."

The archer's mouth opened in an expressive "O". "I see," he said.

"I know it's sort of a personal thing to ask, but we've been considering a cochlear implant and we're just not sure if we should wait? I've been meaning to ask you but I know we really don't know each other, and Bohdi's been having some trouble with adjusting since - since he was ill. Like most kids, the Avengers are sort of his heroes. When the news came out, I thought maybe . . . I don't know, maybe you could talk to him?"

Clint looked past her to where the boy and Arrow wrestled over a stick. Arrow inevitably won and off he ran with the object lodged between his teeth and his tongue lolling out. He could see the hearing aids as the boy cruised by. He could hear them too, a thin shrill of a dying battery that most likely the child hadn't noticed yet. A smirked danced beneath his skin. There was a time he walked around Stark Tower for two days while the team was out on a mission. He hadn't noticed one of the batteries in his hearing aids needed resetting and it made that exact same sound. Office workers could be polite to a fault. No one told him until Natasha got back and pointed it out.

"Does he know sign language?" Clint asked.

"We've all been learning. It's only been a couple months."

"It's good to learn. For everyone to learn. Mr. Stark may not show it much, but he's a good guy. He actually helped me learn it better by going to the classes with me."

She seemed surprised.

"Bohdi?" He asked.

Her head bobbed.

Clint whistled and Arrow tromped over to him, heaving hard with the stick still in his mouth. Bohdi came up with him, equally breathless and rosy cheeked. His mother motioned him closer to adjust the whistling hearing aid.

"Hello, Bohdi. Your mom's been telling me a little bit about you." Clint said. "Having fun with Arrow?"

Bohdi grimaced as his mom fussed over him. "Yeah, he's a cool dog."

"He deserves a good wearing out. I think you're doing a pretty good job at that."

The boy was shy with strangers. It wasn't a bad thing, but it showed.

"Do you know who I am, Bohdi?" Clint asked.

The boy looked at him a little closer. Clint could see an inquisitive glare in his face. He asked if Bohdi wanted a hint, and the boy did. The Avenger motioned for him to come closer. He reached his hand up and fished blindly behind the boy's ear before calling his Asgardian bow to his hand. The effect was a fantastic magician's illusion where Clint grabbed the bow from thin air.

The boy's face lit up like a child on Christmas morning. "Hawkeye!" he exclaimed. "Wow, you're really Hawkeye!"

Clint laid his bow on his lap so the boy could touch it. "That's right."

"You have an awesome dog, Hawkeye."

He couldn't help agreeing. "Yeah he's pretty cool. You know he's not just a dog, right? He can do a whole lot of cool tricks for me. You wanna see?"

Bohdi nodded.

Arrow, knowing at once he was about to perform, relinquished his stick to Clint's side of the bench. He stood, tail wagging, as he waited. Clint made a curt motion with his hand, and Arrow sat. Another and Arrow stood. A third had him rolling over, and the fourth sent him spinning in a circle.

"Hey, I know that." Bohdi said.

"What is it?"

"Sign language."

Clint agreed. "That's right. I had to teach him. I did it because I'm deaf. Did you know that?"

The boy looked away from the dog to his hero. He decided standing was too much and instead opted to sit between Clint and his mother with the top limb of the Asgardian bow on his lap. His fingers traced the black carvings on it. "I didn't know that."

"Well, it's true. I was on a very dangerous mission, top secret, working with Captain America and Iron Man. Do you know them?"

The boy moved his head with starry eyed anticipation.

"I had to do something very dangerous, but it saved our lives. Afterwards, I found out that I was deaf and I wasn't going to get better. I went to a lot of doctors and no one could fix me. It was really hard to deal with that. And I was very mad about it too. You ever felt like that?"

The boy played with the string now. He was quiet, listening, and absorbing Clint's story.

"I had to learn to do a lot of things differently. It's hard to be an Avenger when you can't hear anything. Do you know how deaf you are?"

"Seventy percent." Bohdi said. He tried to strum the string but it wouldn't move. True Asgardian weaponry.

"That's all?" Clint huffed. He sat back and slouched his shoulders. "Aww that's nothing. I'm 80. I have a hard time even hearing fire engines."

"Me too!" Bohdi exclaimed.

"Someone tried to pick on me too." Clint said, thinking back to Agent Ward. "And I'm an Avenger. Do kids try and pick on you at school now?"

The boy nodded.

"Kids are mean huh?"

The gesture repeated.

"Well I got these—" Clint removed one of his aural interfaces and set it in his palm. It was smaller than a typical hearing aid, about the size of a button battery. "Iron Man and a really smart guy named Bruce Banner made it for me. It's not perfect, but it almost sounds like it should. And guess what they did to make it work?"

"What?"

"They put a knob in my brain."

The kid's face screwed up in contention.

"Yeah! They got this little thing in there that tells me what things sound like and it works. But you know what's better than this?"

"What?"

Clint indicated Arrow. "He's my best friend. I don't like sleeping in hearing aids, do you?"

"No."

"Me neither. But I couldn't hear my alarm clock. So Arrow wakes me up. Then I couldn't hear my bat phone . . . you know about the bat phone right? That's how the city calls us in when there's an emergency in the middle of the night. Well I couldn't hear it when I was sleeping. So Arrow picks up the phone for me. And when we're out on spy missions, and we have to be real quiet, he knows sign language so we can be stealthy."

The boy's eyes couldn't possibly get any bigger than they were already. He looked down at the waiting Arrow again. "Can I tell him something?"

Clint motioned. "Go ahead."

The boy attempted to sign the word run. He spelled it out. R-U-N. Arrow lifted his ear curiously of the new signal he hadn't seen before.

"Try this," Clint showed him. "I use both my hands, I don't spell the words because sometimes we have to be real fast. So I use just one signal instead of three." He held his hands out together and with Bohdi imitating him, Arrow ran off. From a distance, the dog waited for his recall. Clint then showed Bohdi how to call him back and watched as the boy did so. Arrow raced back over. Bohdi told him to sit, and Arrow sat.

"Do you have any pets?" Clint asked.

"I've got a dog, but he isn't as cool as Arrow." Bohdi said very distinctly.

Clint laughed. "You just gotta work on it. You know, Arrow took a long, long time to teach. I bet if you taught your dog sign language, to wake you up, and help you with the phone, and the doorbell, or even tell you when you're mom is calling for you, you would have a cooler dog than any kid at your school."

The boy looked up at his mom, a spark of hope behind his eyes. It was as if the thought had never occurred to them, and more than likely it hadn't. In the wake of all they had experience lately, getting a dog to assist in rehabilitation was probably the last idea on their list.

"Of course you can." Beth told him.

"It'll be hard work." Clint added. "You should work real hard for a while, then your mom can tell me how you're doing, and maybe I can come out here and you can show me. How's that sound?"

"Yeah!"

Clint tapped the Asgardian bow and it faded to nothing again, much to the boy's wonderment. "All right, it's a deal then. You work hard now, and don't slack off. You've got a big job to do. Why don't you run and play with Arrow for a while longer?"

Bohdi grabbed the stick and, with the wolf trailing after him, he ran back across the grass and mulch to play. The younger girl still remained beneath the jungle gym with her toddler playmate digging for China.

Beth leaned over and touched his arm. "Thank you." She whispered.

Clint replaced the transmitter in his ear and shrugged the comment off. He liked this part of life. Helping kids, saving people, it was these small moments that remind him what being a hero was all about.

"When I went deaf, I was really angry. I wanted a life back that I couldn't have. They say the hearing aids work great, and for some people they do, but in my line of work it just isn't good enough." He looked over at her. "Bohdi's a good kid but there's a lot of them that aren't. He's got to have support against the bullies. He needs to be OK with himself before you can just try and fix him. The problem isn't hearing again, its realizing he's never going to be normal no matter what a doctor tries to tell you. Once him, and the people around him understand that, then I would start looking into Stark's new device."

It wasn't an admonishment but rather the cold truth of the matter. Hearing the words from a man who had been in the same position at a much older age gave her a perspective she didn't realize she needed. Looking at a child, who the world broke, made it difficult not to want to simply fix him. The Avenger's point was made.

"You're right. I never thought of it like that." She said.

"Let him work with his dog." Clint replied. "Give him something to do, something that doesn't judge or care. I'll be around, so when he's ready to show off his skills, just come find me."

They sat together, watching the boy and dog romp around in the grass as Bohdi put his sign language to the test. Arrow was beginning to catch on to the different signal style, and soon the two were communicating on that level only the Dire Wolf mastered.

"I can't thank you enough for speaking to him." Beth said, "And to me. You really are a great guy, Mr. Hawkeye."

Clint smiled. He didn't often think of himself as a mister anything. He accepted the compliment though. He was glad he decided to leave Stark Tower and run Arrow around the park. Usually trouble liked to find him, but he had to admit, this was a much better alternative.

* * *

so a little detraction from the excitement, but i hope you enjoyed it:)


	5. Service Dog

ALLLLL new!

* * *

Book 5 –Service Dog—

**_From the perspective of Arrow_**

Daylight didn't even come by when he nudged me in the bed and told me it was time to go. Usually he waits for the ringer beside his bed to sound, the one that I must listen for and alert him to, but that day was different. He woke nervous. I felt it like a current beneath my pelt.

"It's all right." My momma whispered to me. He was the nicest human I knew, the best in every way. He tried to make me calm and I obeyed the order but I could feel his tension still. My tongue crossed his face in nervous excitement.

We were not the only ones up at the early hour. The Glasses Man woke too. He waited with the Metal Guy in the food cupboard for us to meet them. My momma put my vest on before we walked out. This must be serious because I was on duty now. Would there be bad guys? Little humans? Snacks?

"Ready for a car ride, Arrow?" My momma asks.

I am always ready for a car ride!

I rode in the back of the big car with my Momma sitting beside me. He let me hang my head outside the window. He is the best human ever. I wasn't hungry before, but we passed the cheesy cream place he takes me to once a week. I drooled a little on the window as we kept driving by it. I guess today wasn't that day. My momma must have noticed I wanted food because he reached over and patted my head.

"Did we get something for Arrow?" He asked.

The Glasses Man sat across from us and his head bobbed. "I brought his breakfast. He can eat once you are in surgery."

My momma put his hand between my ears and I leaned against it.

We drove forever.

My tongue got dry as we drove and drove and drove. I pulled my head in and rested on my momma's shoes. He didn't need me yet, even though I had on my vest so I laid for a while beside him until the car ride eventually stopped.

We went to a very big place. Not as big as home, but it was very big. I didn't like the smell, but the people let me inside because I had on my special vest. That always got me inside. Then there was a lot more sitting and waiting. My person stayed tense, wound up like me when I see my ball, only I knew he wasn't happy. I'm not too big to sit in his lap, even if the Metal Guy thinks I am. So I climbed onto his legs and rested my head on his shoulder. This time, he didn't tell me to get down.

My momma wanted to walk around. He liked to walk himself up and down a room when he didn't like something or he thought really hard. So I sat on the bed and watched him walk. The Metal Guy had gone away. I hoped it was to get my breakfast.

"I'm not doing this." My momma said.

"You already agreed to." The Glasses Man said.

"Well I'm un-agreeing to it."

"That's not a word. Tie that closed."

"No! If you are forcing me to turn into a cyborg, then I'm going to strut around with my crack hanging out for you to deal with, too."

I wasn't sure what my momma and Glasses Man were talking about, but I couldn't contain my excitement. I felt it like the ridge rising on my back, and I want to help him somehow. I stayed alert, listening for his ringing square. He liked to talk into it after it made noises. Sometimes it makes him happy, and other times it doesn't. Today, it did not ring. I'm not sure if that was a good thing.

He was wearing a funny dress. I'm not sure why these people keep putting on new pelts and taking them off, but this one doesn't really fit. I could see the back of him, and I saw something I don't think I ever noticed before. He doesn't have a tail! Of course I investigated, and he shooed me away, but there he was, sitting there with no tail at all.

My poor momma. People are weird.

"Clint, we've been trying to plan this for a month. You keep canceling it on us! We've done all the preliminary testing, the device works. All you have to do is agree to some sedation, and sleep the morning away. When you wake up, there is a short recovery time, maybe two weeks, and then it's over. Tony and I designed the device to be near perfect hearing. You need this."

"I know I need it."

The bed wasn't very comfy, but then again, neither is my momma's, back home. He doesn't like the squishy beds like the Metal Guy. His bed is soft. But the Glasses Man has a bed somewhere in between. I don't go in his room much, but when my momma is out, he sometimes calls me in and I spend the night wrapped up on his feet. It makes him happy, which makes me happy.

I kept thinking how my momma put on my vest today. That meant he was serious that I must be on top of my game. I wasn't distracted by the fuzzy bushy tailed things outside the window, and I'm not allowed to go to the cheese cream place by myself. And I get to go places where people usually don't let me. I've never been to this area before, but I already didn't like it. It smelled like that place he takes me to, with the people in the white pelts, when I throw up on the carpet or eat rocks. I wondered if the humans here were going to stick their people fingers up my butt again, but so far they left me alone.

Is this where human people go when they eat rocks?

That must be it! That must be why I saw my momma doesn't have a tail, and he's wearing weird clothes, and I'm wearing my vest. This must be the human place, and he is going to have his butt checked. Well, I guessed better him than me.

He must know I'm worried. He came over to the bed and sat down, letting me rub my head against him. I don't like it when he's nervous. It makes me nervous too, and I know he needs me to listen for him. I'm still a little wolf. I wish I was bigger. My brothers are bigger, and my sisters are female, and my wolf parents are really, really big. If I was bigger, then maybe I could teach him not to eat rocks and end up here like he taught me (even though sometimes I can't help myself, they look like snacks, sometimes I don't find out they're not until later).

He's super smart.

He stroked a hand through my scruff, and I widened my jowls in what he calls my "smile". He usually repeats it, which gets me so excited my tail wiggles back and forth and I roll over. But this time, he didn't smile and that made me sad. I leaned in more against him.

"We've been over the procedure a few times now," Glasses Man said gently. He placed his hands in his leg pelts, where the fingers disappeared. He tried to talk really calm, like when he's getting me to go out for a walk and I don't want to go, but in the end he always convinces me.

"They're cutting into my skull." My momma said.

"They are using the most sophisticated instruments available. I should know, because I built half of them."

"They said they could cut my facial nerve. I don't know what that is, but it sounds important."

"It is important, and they won't." Glasses Man sighed. He leaned forward and stroked my nose, which I appreciated. "Look, Clint. You know you can't stand working with your hearing aids the way they are currently. They don't reach the sensitivity you need, and that, in itself, has gotten you in trouble in the past. The auricular device will change everything."

My momma turned to look down at me. "But I have Arrow now."

My heart swelled up, and I got so excited when he said my name. I stood on my two front paws and licked his nose.

"Arrow can't go on every mission with you, and you know it's not fair to force that on him."

Now Glasses Man said my name. I had to lick his face too. I was such a big part of their talk! He put his hand over my nose, and I tucked up my front paws again to sit down. My ears cocked in the funny way they liked as I looked from one of my favorite people to the other. I wondered what they were talking about. I knew the human words. I was good at human words, but the meaning didn't come very easy for a little Dire Wolf. I still had a lot of meanings to figure out.

Across from us, the door opened, and my third favorite person (or maybe the second) spilled inside. A full fluster of movement followed him in, and I got up on my four legs to watch. He felt more like a daddy than my momma did. Usually, he told me what the bad dog things, and good dog things were. My momma fed me, put t-shirts on me, walked me, and slept with me at night. I call my human daddy the Metal Guy. He has so many great tin chew toys, but he doesn't let me play with them.

The Metal Guy hadn't been able to stay still for more than a few moments. He didn't drive the big car that brought us to the people clinic, but the Smiley Man did. I remember being happy to see him since nobody knows he saves little dog biscuits in his leg pelts for me.

"Everything set? How are you feeling? They give you something yet?" the Metal Guy said.

My momma looked sad. "I'm not doing this."

"I had open heart surgery, you get to have brain surgery."

"I don't think that's a fair exchange."

"It's all you're going to get, as far as I'm considered." Metal Guy hiked a thumb toward the door for Glasses Man. "You need to scrub up or something?"

The command worked for Glasses Man, the same way it worked for me. I wish I had thumbs. Before Glasses Man left, he stroked my nose once more.

"It'll be fine." Metal Guy said when we were alone.

"I know it will."

If Metal Guy had floppy tipped ears, he would give the same funny cocked head that I usually do. "Wait . . . what?" he said.

My momma laid back on the bed, letting his naked people legs hang over the edge with hardly enough pelt to cover him. With more of my master available to love, I gladly shifted position until I was sitting on his chest.

"I'm not worried about that." he said.

"Well, paint me surprised."

I didn't want him to get up again. I knew if he just let me sit on him a little while longer, he'd feel better. But he did get up, and I had to slide off. Instead, I licked at the sticky white stuff someone stuck to the inside of his arm.

"Tony what happens if - " he started and paused. "What if this doesn't work? What if we go through all this, and it doesn't work?"

"It'll work."

"What if it _doesn't_ though?"

"No, it will. And you still have us. You still have Arrow. And whether it works or not, that's not going to change."

I knew the words 'change', 'no', and 'Arrow'. Of course I was never going to change. I never wanted to leave my new momma after he fed me, raised me, and became the most important thing in my whole wide life. He hunted with me, and taught me things like peeing on grass, and he took me to dog parks, and every time I needed him he was always there.

I crushed my face into his chest. How can I make a human understand that I will not change? That, once a Dire Wolf has a new momma, they never go back? They never leave?

I am a Dire Wolf, even if I am a little one. And I will never abandon my pack.

_I won't go,_ I told my human. But I knew the only thing his ears could hear was, "Arrrroooo."

:(:):(:):

My momma went away forever. I counted!

But then he came back. When he did, he didn't act like he was ok. I don't know what the people clinic does, but he looked like a drunken fuzzy-tail, twirling two arms over his head in big circles, like one of those guys standing in the middle of the black roads directing shiny cars.

I'm not allowed to chase them either.

After a time of scaring me out of my pelt, he rolled over, and chewed on the chips of ice Glasses Man provided to keep him calm. One of the people I didn't know tried to keep me out, and I MAY have growled at him.

Ok, I growled at him.

The daddy side came right out of Metal Guy when he yelled at me, and told me it was BAD to growl at nice people, but he let me stay anyway. I knew the word _bad_. Bad, meant I threw up on the carpet, or chewed on his tin shoes, or buried my food in the couch again. He didn't let me do those things. I tried to remember that growling at strangers was bad too, but sometimes I forget.

For not growling anymore, he gave me the cracker he saved in his pocket.

Best. Dad. Ever.

After my momma stopped flailing, and seemed to act like a sleepy morning person again, I leaped into the bed. I was getting stronger, and I knew it would take a command from momma . . . and only momma . . . to get me down again. But he let me stay. The man who saved me, fed me, and loved me more than any other, wrapped his arms around the fluff on my neck and drew me against his chest.

I love my dire daddy, and I was always closer to my dire mommy, but my person meant the most to me, ever! When he took me in his arms, I knew I never wanted him to go away again. I wanted to protect him from the people that took him away, and made him act like a funny fuzzy-tail with swirly arms. He was my person!

Glasses Man shook the red plastic cup in front of our faces. My momma reached a hand out, and grabbed a few chips of ice. He rolled some into his mouth, and offered the bigger chunk to me. Beside Glasses Man, Metal Guy waved his hand twice to gain momma's attention. He made a few signals with his hand.

I recognized some of them, but I knew they weren't commands for me. I turned my eyes up to make sure my momma watched him. He must not have his ears working. When his ears don't work good, the others tell me by motioning in the air. Then it's time for me to do my job, and be Alert Dog. I like being Alert Dog.

"You're still fuzzy. I don't think I could read your lips."

Metal Man gave a thumbs up. He gestured toward the door and spelled in the air.

"Natasha?"

He gestured again.

"Coming? Still not out of the airport?"

Thumbs up. My momma nodded, and closed his eyes. I knew he wanted to keep them open and look at his friends, but he still looked very tired. I wondered why they didn't let him sleep when he went away forever. I licked his chin with an icy tongue. This made him smile a little, but his hands went lax on my neck. I could feel him go to sleep, the way I could feel myself get tired too. Worrying over my momma was an exhausting business. I decided I needed a nap too.

_:(:):(:):_

My person started to move when he woke up, which made me open my eyes again. Glasses Man was sitting on the other side of the hard bed. Metal Guy had his feet kicked up on the end of the bed with a car book in his lap. I shifted from my position beside my momma to stuff my hind end beneath the thin blanket, but a new smell caught my nose. It reminded me of those fruit stands we go to sometimes on the street. I knew it must be the pretty lady my momma likes. By angling slightly to look down, I noticed Lady arrived. I thumped my tail, and panted happily at her. My momma was worried all day, and tired, and not very happy. She made him happy.

Metal Guy folded the thin flappy book and dropped it to the floor. He waved. He touched his eye, speaking at the same time. "How's the vision now, Hawk spy?"

"I can read lips." My momma mumbled. He still felt tired. "How long was I out for?"

"Two hours."

Lady sat up and folded her legs, setting her square ringing thing in her leg pelts.

"I leave for four days, and you decide to get brain surgery? Hate to see what happens when you go under deep cover." She said with an unhappy look.

"We hadn't exactly failed to inform you he was going under the knife, but he did finally agree to it without waiting for you to be back in the U.S. We had to hurry, the timing to get all of the physicians in line before Clint bowed out was very small. Waiting for you to finish eliminating the threat of an Eastern European terrorist group at Buckingham Palace, wasn't exactly an option." Metal Guy said.

"Sorry." My momma said. He reached for his head, but Metal Guy on one side, and Glasses Man on the other kept his hands down. He had this funny white stuff all over his hair like a Christmas hat.

"There's a wrap on your head." Lady said. "You'll have it on till tomorrow. The docs aren't letting you go home till then."

"How's my facial nerve?"

Glasses Man waved. Clint looked at him and read the words he said.

"In perfect working order. So stop worrying."

My momma stretched his arms over his head a little, as I poked out from beneath the blanket to lick his nose. Momma ruffled the tuft of hairs on the top of my muzzle, which caused the windmill tail to gyrate. Lady leaned forward and scratched my back through the sheet.

Best. People. Ever.

Metal Guy waved. I tapped my person with my paw, to signal the speaker like he taught me. Momma looked over.

"You want food?" Metal Guy asked.

My momma nodded. Good, I was starving! He tried to rub his face again, but Glasses Man grabbed his hand to stop him. He did the same thing to me when I had an itchy spot on my neck he wouldn't let me scratch. I decided I should help, so I put my paw on his hands too.

My momma laid back and hugged my neck.

Metal Guy leaned over, and grabbed a paper bag which he rustled through. My ears shot up in utter excitement. PIZZA! It had to be pizza. I love pizza. Pizza is the bestest best stuff—

I watched him as Metal Guy handed over the smuggled-in cheeseburger. Half of that was mine. I knew it. I had to wait. It was bad to steal. But if I waited, and if I licked my lips, he would give it to me. I just had to wait.

He is such a slow eater, but after forever, he gave me the half of the cheeseburger I wanted. It was amazing! Not as amazing as Pizza, but it was food. People food. People food is the best food because you never know what it will taste like!

As I munched on the meat and cheese and strange tangy sauce, the Smiley Man came by with biscuits in his pocket for me. The nice lady that the Metal Guy shares his bed with came too, and the fast guy who runs me around in the park and takes me tracking. The sun started going away, and the night popped out, a party started in the room.

No one asked me to leave, which I liked a lot because people parties meant more chances for people food.

Like Pizza!

The clinic people all came into the room, and became very excited to see my pack, which I liked a lot. New people always liked my pack, that's how I knew I had a really good one. I knew that word too. Good. We were good. I was a good boy and my momma was a good guy.

There were some little humans with the clinic people who came to visit. I like the little people a lot. They may pull my ears, and tug my tail, but they are always covered in the greatest smells and tastes. And I love the sounds they make when we play! My momma likes it when I am nice to them, and so do I. It makes me a good wolf.

A few of the little humans took me for a walk, which I didn't realize how much I needed until I went outside. They said I had big poop. I never thought there were different kinds of poop. Maybe the dogs at the dog park know.

The little people had wraps on their heads too, like the white hat my momma wore. I wonder if they were all here to get the same people things done. I wondered why they were only little pack members, and not big pack members like my momma was. Either way, I didn't mind. I was still a growing pup myself, and I took to everyone instantly, though all I really wanted was to sit and wait for my person to call me back to bed.

The pack party finally settled after a long, long, long time went by. I think it was forever. Metal Guy and his alpha lady said they were going on a car ride, and Glasses Man went with them. Lady said she was going for a walk. And the really tall guy that doesn't have an alpha female went to go with her. I wondered if he was planning to take Lady away from my momma, but I knew my momma was a stronger alpha than that so I didn't worry about it.

The Alpha-less laughed. "You need me to walk you around? Seriously?"

Lady shrugged. "Sometimes a girl just wants to walk around with Captain Turn-Of-The-Century himself on her arm."

Alpha-less' face snapped toward my momma. I wondered if they were challenging each other. "Are you hearing this?"

But my momma just smiled. "Not a word. I think it's a set-up. Go have fun."

I knew he was the best pack leader ever.

With the decision out of his hands, Lady and Alpha-less filed out together, not long behind the pack going home. My person, left to his own devices, eased down on his borrowed bed. Spying the open position again, I hopped happily over and crashed against my momma with unreserved delight. The man grasped a hold of me, and rolled over with my whole body in a bear hug. We always slept wrapped together. I could feel his mind relaxing in the knowledge that if there was one thing in his life he got right, it was getting picked by that little grey wolf pup on Asgard.

And I was that little grey wolf pup.

"You'll always be here, won't you?" my human momma whispered.

I nuzzled my cold nose beneath his chin. There could be no doubt; he and I are stuck with each other, and that is just how I like it.

"Arroooo. Roo." I told him.

_I won't go. Ever_.

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I may do another Arrow-perspective chapter in the future after he matures into an adult and see what the difference is like.

I love how he gender swaps Clint into a mom.

Please review!


	6. My Earliest Memory

So this was an excellent prompt from a guest! I excitedly got to work on it right away, so I hope you enjoy it!

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**Book 6**

**-My Earliest Memory-**

_From the Perspective of Arrow_

I occasionally find myself thinking back to the first day I met the man who would become both my master and my friend. Today little else has presented to divide my time and my thoughts journey back to then, when I was called a native of Asgard and my fate had yet to be determined.

My friend seemed to notice the depth of look in my eyes. He reached his hand down to my face to drag his fingers over the tender hair on my muzzle. I felt his spirit become disquieted as he attempted to understand my thoughts. Our connection has deepened. A normal occurrence for a dire wolf and the creature he bonds to. My father and mother, Freki the Black and Geri the White, instructed me as such when my mind became old enough to understand such things. I sent him a quiet reassurance in the way I knew I could. It brought a smile to his lips and he settled again in his chair.

Many long days and longer night have passed since the time of my choice. I've traveled to many places both in the Midgardian, or Earthen, realm and on Asgard. Mostly I was by his side during our journeys. As a young wolf, I called him my mother, my nurturer, my person. As I have grown I understand him for what he is. Clint Barton is my bond, my very life force. The only connection with the human race that I possess. I find that my life itself holds little meaning without his presence. This is the natural state of the dire wolf. This is the world I was brought into. I would not trade this bond for even the most desired king in all the nine realms.

I stacked my paws atop one another with my nose lying between. We were in the apartment now. Secluded and alone. Just the two of us. I still don't understand why we had to leave the great house behind. I miss Stark, the man whose metal boots brought me so much joy, the Captain and his flying shield I would jump and catch, and all the others too. I trust my friend has done what is best for us, though I feel the rend in his soul as keenly as if it were my own.

Sitting at his feet, my thoughts return to those first days. The ones where my eyes first opened to the light of day and all I saw was the thick fur of my mother wolf. My siblings and I would rake our claws against each other in desperate attempt to gain greater succulence than each other. Even now that rivalry exists, despite our growing older.

Dire wolves are self-sufficient. From the time of our birth we can tear at the meat from our Master's table. I grew those first weeks chewing the portion of Odin Allfather and the greatest of Asgardians. Despite my small size I knew I was meant for a great purpose. My sisters may have laughed at such nonsense. The boys chewed at my ears and beat their paws against my face as they chuckled little huffs at the notions I created. Mother and father wolf seemed to understand, though I don't know how.

:(:):(:):

I met the man known only at the time as the Brother of Asgard on a brisk morning following a war. The cold eaves from the days before ceased. These were the selfsame gusts that once caused frost to build upon my pelt and sent the seven of us pups piling upon one another for warmth. That morning it was as if spring had returned again and with it, he came.

I did not know him at the time. He was a stranger coming to visit the offspring of Geri and Freki like so many other travelers had. To be born a dire wolf came with a great purpose. One day we must chose a master. Someone with which to share our all in a bond not unlike a mated pair. I was such a young pup then. I had seen many men come and go, but still none of the seven separated. Our parents observed that it would be a long while before we were to leave the pack. I had little concept of time then. A while to me meant forever and a day. I thought that the pack was something enigmatic and unchanging. I assumed, like my brothers and sisters, that nothing in the whole of the realms could tear me from the family I loved.

When the door to the den opened and I saw the king and queen my heart swelled. I knew they cared for us. I knew their presence meant attention, love, and better yet food. But besides their appearance, on this occasion they brought a third person with which to love. He wasn't much to see. The famed Brother of Asgard was a shorter man with closely cut fur on the top of his head and simply draped clothes. He was not as fancy as either the king or queen and he didn't seem anything like the other royals that often visited the den. But beyond the simplicity I found my heart fluttering a little at the sight of him.

I remember sitting by my mother's snout as the man approached. He was completely intriguing. I hardly knew what to do with myself. My mother wolf seemed to understand that something had changed in me and while the man sat to coddle my sister. I could not move. I breathed suddenly very fast. Even now as I remembered that singular moment my heart leaped.

In the present, my master sensed the excitement in my heart. Concerned, Barton reached down from his chair and stroked his hand through my fur. "Hush." His words spoke a quiet into my spirit. "Easy, boy."

But I could not completely listen. All I could think of were those first few moments together. My eyes catching his as suddenly I _knew_. This was the feeling my dire parents felt when first they encountered Odin Allfather. This overwhelming need to follow, protect, obey, and love. I felt it down to my marrow. An emotion so deep and strong I could hardly keep myself from shaking. I must have looked so small and helpless. The youngest, puniest, runt of the litter. The dirty grey hair that was nothing in comparison to the pure white of my mother or the jet black of my father. I was plain. Ordinary. I was nothing great or special. I would never amount to the magnificence of my parents or half of my siblings.

"What is it, Lifili?" my dire mother asked. She called me _Little One_ in the tongue of the wolves. The name was fitting of my stature.

I could not answer her, I was mesmerized by the man known as Clint of Barton.

"He is grand." My mother spoke in her hushed ways. I often dwelled on the stories she'd spin for us in the moonlight of our den. There were few I knew as I had left so soon from that place.

I gave her a small puppy squeak.

"Do you fancy him? The man of Midgard?"

My little black eyes never removed from his face.

"Why do you not introduce yourself? What holds you back, Lifili?"

I did not know, so I did not answer. From where he leaned on the human's back, the striking eyes of my father, Freki, bore down on me. He saw the change there as much as I felt it myself. His eyes darted once, from my face to Geri and back again to me. Perhaps they knew? Perhaps they suspected? Often I heard them speak of the homes they had found for their other pups. Was this a selection? Were they choosing this life for me? Here? Now? But it hardly felt like a choice at all. Instead it felt like a journey. The first step onto a path that would lead me of grand new adventures, all I had to do was take it.

The man's eyes crossed to mine as he released my larger black sister. He stared straight through me.

They were leaving.

No! I wanted so desperately to cry. I didn't want him to go. I didn't want to be left without him. If he walked away now would I ever find him again? What would happen to me? Would anyone else want me? Could any other accept me when the one person I was destined to bond with departed?

Odin and Frigga headed for the door ahead of the Midgardian. Though he looked at me for but a moment, he seemed to experience nothing of what I felt. He was going. He wouldn't ever come back, not before I had already been placed in a new home. I had to stop him! I had to run after him, make him understand!

"Go to him!" My dire father whispered into my ear. It was not a command, but a suggestion. If I was sure, if I meant to follow this Midgardian, I must take my chance!

Geri stood in the doorway, blocking it from shutting with her paw. I had enough space to clamber beneath her leg and into the hallway. I didn't call for the human for I couldn't be sure he would understand me, but I followed him. When he found me at his back, I could tell he still didn't see me. Not the way I needed him to. How does one make a human understand how important they are to a young dire wolf? How did Freki and Geri ever make Odin understand their bond the way I must for Clint Barton? I should have asked, or listened when they told me such things for even after rushing after him, the human meant to return me! He scooped me up in his hands and dropped me right back at the feet of my parents.

What was I doing wrong?

"Persistence." Freki advised through pointed white teeth.

"Patience." Geri added.

Persistence. Patience. Those must be my battle cries! I dug myself out from beneath the bodies of my larger brothers and sisters and raced back down the hall after the retreating Clint Barton.

_Persistent. Patient. Persistent. Patient. Look at me! Look into my marrow! Feel my spirit call! Persistent. Patient. I will not give up!_

It took all the strength in my small legs to catch up with the man and when he turned to look, there I was.

_See me!_ I willed the man. _You must see it! You are my person! I am your dire. I will never leave you!_

His blue eyes narrowed toward me, as if to challenge my very resolve. "Stubborn thing, aren't you? What, mom doesn't want to play disciplinarian and keep you put?" he said.

_I will be stubborn. I will not stay put. _I thought back to him.

But he still didn't understand. My brows furrowed as I remembered it. The frustration was palpable. I couldn't speak to him, not like I can now. Nothing I could do would convince him of the truth. I thought perhaps he was going to pick me up again, to take me back to the den and leave me there for a second time. But before he could, I felt a familiar set of jaws flex around my body and lift me through the air. Geri, my dire mother, picked me up like the pup I was and set me in the human's hands. She left me there, spared no goodbye, and turned back toward the pack.

And then the tide broke. He knew. He looked at me, really saw into me, and then he knew. My heart cleaved in two that day. Part of it drifted up, into the air between us where it sealed with a side of his. The connection, thicker than the blood of a pack, kept me his confidant, his friend, and his partner until this very day.

My eyes rolled up in my skull to look at my human. Trouble followed him more than I did these days. He had trained me to be his ears and more and more I became his eyes as well. He needed me more than ever. I knew his heart grew cold with worry over the work we did and despite my attempts at affection there was only so much I could do to take his stress away.

"You OK, Arrow?" He asked me.

I lifted my head from my paws and considered the peculiar man. He named me Arrow, an improvement from the name of my mother. Arrows were his life. He breathed and made his living by them. To be counted one of his most prized possessions, the instrument by which his life revolved, was an honor. I unfolded my paws and leaned upward until my head forced into his hand. With little option to refuse my attention, he willingly stroked his fingers through my scruff to the place he knew I loved most. He let his fingers kneed the spot between my shoulders as my back leg raised unintentionally to itch the air.

I am a lucky wolf. I knew from only a few months after my birth who my master would be and the man Clint Barton was the best I could ask for. Gentle and fair, willing and driven, we shared so much more than I could ever expect as a dire wolf living in the realm of mortal man. I did have one regret and that was his mortality. One day I would lose this master and must start again with someone else. Life with another could not compare to this. In some ways I wish my long life would cut short, if only to spare me the centuries to come without Clint Barton.

"Arrow?"

My eyes raised to his. Did he understand my troubled thoughts? We shared so much of ourselves now.

_I don't want you to leave me. _I whispered to him_. I know one day you must, and there is nothing I can do to stop it. But I wish there was some way for me to climb the stars first so I don't have to feel your loss. _My thoughts tended to be selfish ones.

"We'll be ok." He said, vacating his leather chair to sit on the floor beside me. I nearly climbed into his lap.

"I know you don't understand why we're here, or why we left. But I know you trust me, Arrow. There are some dangerous men after us. We have to find them first. It's going to be hard. We'll be mostly alone. I'll need you to be strong for me."

He circled my neck with his arms and clasped them beneath my chin. I could stay in that position forever if he asked.

"It's just you and me from here out. I know you're worried. I know this isn't what we're used to. But we're in this together, till the end. Right, boy?"

I bobbed my head beneath his. I wonder if he knew whether I was agreeing with him or not. We sat together in the shadow of the television box as the world passed us by. I knew work would not leave us long. Soon we must be up again, sneaking through the city after the bad men's trails. For now, I felt happy to just have this. A fleeting moment of respite between dire wolf and his master as we watched _Dog Cops_ track down another felon.

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i hope you loved it!

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